All Pacific island countries and areas are vulnerable to emerging infectious diseases, including pandemics, food and water insecurity, and to natural hazards, especially extreme weather events that are expected to increase in severity or frequency as a result of climate change.

WHO assists countries and areas in the Pacific to strengthen infectious disease surveillance and response systems. A key activity is the management and coordination of the weekly Pacific Syndromic Surveillance System (PSSS) that provides early warning alerts for potential disease outbreaks. PSSS collects, collates and reports surveillance data from 23 Pacific island countries. The system reports information that could indicate the start of an outbreak-prone disease.  

Pacific syndromic surveillance reports

The Pacific Syndromic Surveillance System (PSSS) collects data on the following syndromes: acute fever and rash, diarrhea, influenza-like-illness, prolonged fever and dengue-like illness. PSSS serves as an invaluable early warning tool for common outbreak-prone diseases and a mechanism for regular contact between Pacific island countries and areas, WHO and other international agencies such as the Secretariat of the Pacific Community.